Is the new E-Class selling well?
#26
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" I suspect as E350 leases expire we will see more E300's." Or maybe not? Perhaps their lessees will decide to buy out their leases, and keep driving their E 350's rather than drive a strange sounding 4-cylinder, 2 liter engined un-fun machine. Depends a lot on the age, and gender of the lessees. Personally, I think the E300's conception and pricing was a major strategic error that MB will be forced to correct going forward.
Last edited by c4004matic; 01-07-2017 at 12:32 AM.
#27
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Living in Florida I drive with the sunroof open and the windows down 9 months of the year - July through September being the exception. Because of the lack of power one must continually adjust the accelerator causing continuous gear and rpm changes. That was my experience during a multi-day test drive. The bottom line is the E300 is an under powered car that sounds like a mosquito buzzing about the ear sort of like that old Honda Civic in the next lane.
#28
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Anyone that says that the e300 sounds strange hasnt driven one. From inside the engine sounds perectly fine and goes about its business without calling any attention to itself. The car never feels underpowered. In fact the car is more than plenty fun to drive. 90% of prospective buyers will not care what is moving their car along smartly and almost silently. Though the car is slower to 60 than the 350 however the 1 /4 mile is essentially identical. Who cares about how many cylinders are under the hood when the performance is almost identical and the new engine gets 20% better fuel economy? Pretty silly and nonsensical argument to me.
Living in Florida I drive with the sunroof open and the windows down 9 months of the year - July through September being the exception. Because of the lack of power one must continually adjust the accelerator causing continuous gear and rpm changes. That was my experience during a multi-day test drive. The bottom line is the E300 is an under powered car that sounds like a mosquito buzzing about the ear sort of like that old Honda Civic in the next lane.
Never heard a mosquito buzzing. What does that sound like....ok...you think a 4 cylinder E300.
#29
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Living in Florida I drive with the sunroof open and the windows down 9 months of the year - July through September being the exception. Because of the lack of power one must continually adjust the accelerator causing continuous gear and rpm changes. That was my experience during a multi-day test drive. The bottom line is the E300 is an under powered car that sounds like a mosquito buzzing about the ear sort of like that old Honda Civic in the next lane.
#30
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Living in florida the only people that drive with their windows down are the owners of beaters with broken A/C's. In Fla 90% of the yime its too hot too noisy too dangerous or raining to drive with the windows down. In fact unless its a drop top I dont think Ive seen anyone driving with their windows down since the 80 when finally ac became standard in all cars.
#31
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Anyone that says that the e300 sounds strange hasnt driven one. From inside the engine sounds perectly fine and goes about its business without calling any attention to itself. The car never feels underpowered. In fact the car is more than plenty fun to drive. 90% of prospective buyers will not care what is moving their car along smartly and almost silently. Though the car is slower to 60 than the 350 however the 1 /4 mile is essentially identical. Who cares about how many cylinders are under the hood when the performance is almost identical and the new engine gets 20% better fuel economy? Pretty silly and nonsensical argument to me.
The E300 is an improvement over my 2010 and/or 2014 E350 (both great cars) in nearly every regard, including engine performance, but excluding engine/exhaust sound, which wasn't even a factor.
#32
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Thanks for sticking up for the maligned E300. I was beginning to think I had made a mistake.
The E300 is an improvement over my 2010 and/or 2014 E350 (both great cars) in nearly every regard, including engine performance, but excluding engine/exhaust sound, which wasn't even a factor.
The E300 is an improvement over my 2010 and/or 2014 E350 (both great cars) in nearly every regard, including engine performance, but excluding engine/exhaust sound, which wasn't even a factor.
#33
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Im fine with the engine, except for the start/stop which is still pretty jarring, though that is expected even if you had a 6 cyl. You would need an 8 or 12 for it to be practically imperceptible. However, engine sound is not that pleasant. However, I dont feel vibration at all during idle, and I am fine with the power/acceleration
#34
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Im fine with the engine, except for the start/stop which is still pretty jarring, though that is expected even if you had a 6 cyl. You would need an 8 or 12 for it to be practically imperceptible. However, engine sound is not that pleasant. However, I dont feel vibration at all during idle, and I am fine with the power/acceleration
#36
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I would say not at this point. I live in an area considered by many to be MB capital, Orange County California, close to a large FJ MB dealership and since its release, I have seen maybe 5 or 6 on the road and 2 parked. I am sure they are selling, but at this point, I don't believe sales are where they should be. My personal opinion is that a lot of prospective buyers like myself, are waiting for the E400 to be offered. I recently finally took the call of a persistent Fletcher Jones MB salesman wondering why I have not made the leap to the E300 after turning in my 2014 E350 last September. Gave him my reasons stated above and he stated there were lots of others like me in the same situation not too pleased with the current engine offered. He proceeded to blame this on EPA requirements yada yada yada...Why then is this same engine offered in the wagon and upcoming E coupe and the monster engines offered in all the other US muscle cars I see all over the place? Maybe I am missing something but I'm just not buying it. Of course he started stirring me to come take a look at the one E43 (no EPA concerns here either) they had on the lot somewhere for a base price of $81000..sure.
Regarding Fletcher Jones, years ago, I made the mistake of giving one of their clowns my phone number. It was a nightmare, with never ending calls from them. Whenever I walk their lot, just to look at the cars, I always feel as though I need a shower and maybe a shot of penicillin afterwards. I hate FJ, will never buy there and highly recommend MB of Foothill Ranch.
#37
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I'm sure the new e-class drives well but man is that thing boring looking. And the new CLE is another eye snoozer. What is going on MB? You had 'forward design' in your back pocket with the last gen models, sexiest headlights, taillights and body panels in the business... but now? Front ends that all look like Sprinter van variants, lame and cheap looking headlight and tailights... and truly... the most boring 'ultra-conservative' soft body panels that are right out of Toyota circa 1990. Snooze. Ain't buying nothing from you until next gen.
#38
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I'm sure the new e-class drives well but man is that thing boring looking. And the new CLE is another eye snoozer. What is going on MB? You had 'forward design' in your back pocket with the last gen models, sexiest headlights, taillights and body panels in the business... but now? Front ends that all look like Sprinter van variants, lame and cheap looking headlight and tailights... and truly... the most boring 'ultra-conservative' soft body panels that are right out of Toyota circa 1990. Snooze. Ain't buying nothing from you until next gen.
#39
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" and the interior is innovative and outstanding" I could not agree more. The new interior is really lovely, and more's the shame that it's been paired with an engine that is just not up to par. I expect that MB will be highly motivated to offer the new inline 6 in the E-Class very quickly.
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" and the interior is innovative and outstanding" I could not agree more. The new interior is really lovely, and more's the shame that it's been paired with an engine that is just not up to par. I expect that MB will be highly motivated to offer the new inline 6 in the E-Class very quickly.
#41
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I have not experienced the 2.0L I4 in the E300, but I have plenty of experience with that same engine in the W205 C300 and I do not like it one bit. It sounds bad and is very peaky. Much prefer the 302hp M276 V6 in the older "350" cars like mine.
I will reserve judgment on the rest of the E until I can experience it.. I sure hope it is better than the W205, though. The interior design in the 205 is nice, but upon close inspection there are quite a bit of materials that are, shall we say, suspect.
I will reserve judgment on the rest of the E until I can experience it.. I sure hope it is better than the W205, though. The interior design in the 205 is nice, but upon close inspection there are quite a bit of materials that are, shall we say, suspect.
#42
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I have not experienced the 2.0L I4 in the E300, but I have plenty of experience with that same engine in the W205 C300 and I do not like it one bit. It sounds bad and is very peaky. Much prefer the 302hp M276 V6 in the older "350" cars like mine.
I will reserve judgment on the rest of the E until I can experience it.. I sure hope it is better than the W205, though. The interior design in the 205 is nice, but upon close inspection there are quite a bit of materials that are, shall we say, suspect.
I will reserve judgment on the rest of the E until I can experience it.. I sure hope it is better than the W205, though. The interior design in the 205 is nice, but upon close inspection there are quite a bit of materials that are, shall we say, suspect.
Anyway, read here about Mercedes sales. They are doing just fine.
https://mbworld.org/articles/mercedes
#43
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To each his own, but I'm not able to get my head around all the concern about engine or exhaust noise. The engine performance is certainly comparable to the previous model. Who knows why Mercedes chose to exclude the E400 in it's introduction of the new model. Probably concern that 4cyl wouldn't sell given American's love affair with cubic inches. The E300 is a luxury sedan (even in "Sports" trim), and it fulfills that mandate nearly perfectly. If you want a hotrod version wait for the E63, or go buy a S8. No problem.
Anyway, read here about Mercedes sales. They are doing just fine.
https://mbworld.org/articles/mercedes
Anyway, read here about Mercedes sales. They are doing just fine.
https://mbworld.org/articles/mercedes
#44
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To each his own, but I'm not able to get my head around all the concern about engine or exhaust noise. The engine performance is certainly comparable to the previous model. Who knows why Mercedes chose to exclude the E400 in it's introduction of the new model. Probably concern that 4cyl wouldn't sell given American's love affair with cubic inches. The E300 is a luxury sedan (even in "Sports" trim), and it fulfills that mandate nearly perfectly. If you want a hotrod version wait for the E63, or go buy a S8. No problem.
Anyway, read here about Mercedes sales. They are doing just fine.
https://mbworld.org/articles/mercedes
Anyway, read here about Mercedes sales. They are doing just fine.
https://mbworld.org/articles/mercedes
The E43 not only gets all the AMG banners badge ****** want it also gets a very big boost in performance compared to the 300 model, not to mention, a nice boost in profit for MB given that its almost 20K extra when optioned similarly. I don't think MB gives an iota about "diluting" the AMG name given that AMG is probably a money pit anyway if they can use it to make good money on their regular menu. Its smart marketing. Furthermore, this also helps AMG's bottom line since they can increase the profit from their operations thus assuring they have a steady flow of cash for their truly unique products.
#45
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AMG = Add to Margin Greatly
My issue isn't with a 4 cylinder engine. It is with the lack of power especially at highway speeds. The additional 90 horsepower of the 3 liter engine is desperately needed.
I test drove a '17 BMW 540i yesterday. It's a great car but lacks the refined interior of the E300.
My issue isn't with a 4 cylinder engine. It is with the lack of power especially at highway speeds. The additional 90 horsepower of the 3 liter engine is desperately needed.
I test drove a '17 BMW 540i yesterday. It's a great car but lacks the refined interior of the E300.
#46
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I have two Mercedes with turbo 4s. They have more than enough power for everyday driving. Americans have become spoiled with their expectations of huge engines. My wife has family in Ireland. The majority of cars sold there do not have the huge engines we have in the USA. I have had on numerous occasions driven BMWs as well as Mercedes with smaller engines in Europe and they are just fine. On reading these post. Someone went and bought an S8 over an E300. That is like comparing apples to oranges. An S8 is the similar to an S63 not an E300 or even E400 or E43. I think in the future we are going to continue see more smaller displacement turbo engine. Mercedes is already planning to use The new inline 6 in the S class as its main engine.
Last edited by dieseldoc; 01-20-2017 at 12:27 PM.
#47
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AMG = Add to Margin Greatly
My issue isn't with a 4 cylinder engine. It is with the lack of power especially at highway speeds. The additional 90 horsepower of the 3 liter engine is desperately needed.
I test drove a '17 BMW 540i yesterday. It's a great car but lacks the refined interior of the E300.
My issue isn't with a 4 cylinder engine. It is with the lack of power especially at highway speeds. The additional 90 horsepower of the 3 liter engine is desperately needed.
I test drove a '17 BMW 540i yesterday. It's a great car but lacks the refined interior of the E300.
I drove the E 300 at well over legal speeds and the car accelerates more than adroitly to well over 100mph. If a comparison is needed, it is as fast as an accord V6, a car virtually everyone considers more than amply powered. Furthermore, the turbo 4 sounds more refined than a Honda 3.5 anywhere in its range (in part due to synthetic sound), I'd call that a pretty good performance from any four banger. The fact is the only way to tell the engine is a four at all is to count the spark plug wires! This engine is way more powerful, refined and better sounding than most v8s from the 70's!!! The whole rigmarole about the base engine being a 4 cylinder is dumb, every one uses a 4 as the base engine for their midsize sedans, in fact, for every German midsize sedan the four always outsells the 6 by a very large margin. If anything, Mercedes is very late to the 4 banger turbo midsize party though it came well dressed.
#48
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With that said, the E300 really sounds raucous at cold starts, specially if you stand near the back end of the car. My MB shop foreman acknowledged this and said the sound would improve as the engine gets warmed up. This is true to some degree. From inside of the car, this is a non issue. The NVH isolation, the sound system, and the toss-able nature of the car serve up a calm and confident ride while push everything else to the background. For the general population, these are the qualities we search for. For enthusiasts, you'll have to pay to play.
One area that the E300 can certainly be improved is the electronics. My car has been in the shop for 6 times in the past 6 months. Of the 4 E300 loaners provided to me, 2 had their Check Engine or other warnings lit up while I was driving them. One of the loaner also developed a rattle on the dash area accompanied by display glitches. The latest incident occured yesterday. While I enjoy the E300 very much, its lack of reliability in little things and the COMAND system begins to worry me.
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#49
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Nobody is saying that the E300 shouldn't exist, it should, for those who are happy with it. For others, nothing short of an E400 will do. Is a simple, non-AMG, six cylinder powered W213 too much to ask for when spending $70K+ for a luxury sedan? I don't think so. Personally, I would just love an E550 Luxury sedan, but I know those days are probably gone forever.
#50
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I suspect the gear change has less to do with power shortage than with maximizing the efficiency by using all of 9 gears the E300 has.
When use as daily driver in the typical urban settings, the E300 has no problem in strolling along, passing slower traffics in 70MPH to 80MPH range, becoming an extension of your thought and just squirting through traffic holes as you see them. My wife drives between 3 to 4 job sites a day, so fuel economy is an important factor to us. The base engine provides a perfect balance of adequate power, refinement, and economy in our case. The MB drivers I see on the road around here seem to prefer the right lanes rather than the left ones . So I suspect the 4 cylinder would be fine for these folks as well. In case if you crave for some excitement, there's always the 43s and 63s, primed and ready to serve. I think MB has always been sold as an executive sedan, aiming at providing comfortable but competent transportation for the well heeled rather than competing in the performance arena.
With that said, the E300 really sounds raucous at cold starts, specially if you stand near the back end of the car. My MB shop foreman acknowledged this and said the sound would improve as the engine gets warmed up. This is true to some degree. From inside of the car, this is a non issue. The NVH isolation, the sound system, and the toss-able nature of the car serve up a calm and confident ride while push everything else to the background. For the general population, these are the qualities we search for. For enthusiasts, you'll have to pay to play.
One area that the E300 can certainly be improved is the electronics. My car has been in the shop for 6 times in the past 6 months. Of the 4 E300 loaners provided to me, 2 had their Check Engine or other warnings lit up while I was driving them. One of the loaner also developed a rattle on the dash area accompanied by display glitches. The latest incident occured yesterday. While I enjoy the E300 very much, its lack of reliability in little things and the COMAND system begins to worry me.
When use as daily driver in the typical urban settings, the E300 has no problem in strolling along, passing slower traffics in 70MPH to 80MPH range, becoming an extension of your thought and just squirting through traffic holes as you see them. My wife drives between 3 to 4 job sites a day, so fuel economy is an important factor to us. The base engine provides a perfect balance of adequate power, refinement, and economy in our case. The MB drivers I see on the road around here seem to prefer the right lanes rather than the left ones . So I suspect the 4 cylinder would be fine for these folks as well. In case if you crave for some excitement, there's always the 43s and 63s, primed and ready to serve. I think MB has always been sold as an executive sedan, aiming at providing comfortable but competent transportation for the well heeled rather than competing in the performance arena.
With that said, the E300 really sounds raucous at cold starts, specially if you stand near the back end of the car. My MB shop foreman acknowledged this and said the sound would improve as the engine gets warmed up. This is true to some degree. From inside of the car, this is a non issue. The NVH isolation, the sound system, and the toss-able nature of the car serve up a calm and confident ride while push everything else to the background. For the general population, these are the qualities we search for. For enthusiasts, you'll have to pay to play.
One area that the E300 can certainly be improved is the electronics. My car has been in the shop for 6 times in the past 6 months. Of the 4 E300 loaners provided to me, 2 had their Check Engine or other warnings lit up while I was driving them. One of the loaner also developed a rattle on the dash area accompanied by display glitches. The latest incident occured yesterday. While I enjoy the E300 very much, its lack of reliability in little things and the COMAND system begins to worry me.
My C400 has had only 2 unintended trips to the dealer. I too have suffered multiple electronic glitches one of which was that the radio quit. The 2 unscheduled ones were for airmatic troubles (in one visit both airmatic and the radio were kaput). When airmatic has any "faults" it defaults to sport+ setting giving you a very brittle ride. Unfortunately, it doesn't give you any messages only "keister" warning.